Mom of Bride Killed in Crash: 'Sam Doesn't Want This to Destroy' Us

Lisa Miller opens up to CBS News
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted May 3, 2023 5:29 PM CDT
Mom of Bride Killed in Crash: 'Sam Doesn't Want This to Destroy' Us
This undated photo shows Samantha Miller and Aric Hutchinson.   (Family of Samantha Miller via AP)

The mother of the bride killed by an allegedly drunk driver on her wedding night has spoken out—on her daughter and the kindness of the residents of Folly Beach, South Carolina, where the Friday night crash occurred. Just hours before Samantha Miller, 34, was killed when the golf cart she and groom Aric Hutchinson were being driven in was catapulted 100 yards after a driver allegedly hit it at 65mph, Lisa Miller tells CBS News her daughter had the wedding DJ announce a surprise: a dance with "the most important person in the bride's life." Samantha and Lisa took to the floor to dance to Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are."

It was a move that Lisa Miller described as representative of her daughter. "She never met a stranger. She wanted to make sure that everybody was taken care of. She doesn't ever want anybody to be sad or mad. Sam doesn't want this to destroy our lives. We know that." Miller said that while she initially wanted to leave the beach town almost immediately, the kindness of strangers has changed her mind. She says people have dropped off dinner, and a Realtor helped them secure an oceanside condo at no charge for a month. She says she wants to help Aric with his recovery once he's out of the hospital. A GoFundMe page set up for the couple has raised more than $600,000 as of this writing.

Jamie Komoroski has been charged with reckless vehicular homicide and three counts of driving under the influence causing death or great bodily injury. CBS News cites a police affidavit that states the 25-year-old told a responding officer that she had consumed a beer and tequila beverage an hour before getting behind the wheel. When asked to rate her impairment on a scale of 1-10, Komoroski "stated she was at a 8," per the affidavit. She then allegedly "became uncooperative on scene" and declined to take a field sobriety test, though her blood was later collected after a judge signed a warrant. (More car crash stories.)

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